Pennsylvania Funding Guide: ESA, Medicaid Waivers, and Homeschool Funding
Facts checked September 21, 2026 · 6-minute read · by the Brainrich Kids team
Pennsylvania has no education savings account. The PASS and Lifeline scholarship proposals were left out of both the 2025-26 and 2026-27 budgets, and the EITC and OSTC programs pay school tuition. The developmental disability waivers changed their assistive technology limits on January 1, 2026.
The quick answer for Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania has no ESA. PASS and Lifeline were not enacted in the budgets signed November 12, 2025 and July 12, 2026, and the EITC and OSTC scholarships pay tuition at a school. For a child with an intellectual disability or autism, the Consolidated, P/FDS, and Community Living Waivers list "Assistive Technology" and "Specialized Supplies." Since January 1, 2026 the Consolidated Waiver limits assistive technology to $3,000 per fiscal year, and P/FDS ($47,000 a year) and Community Living ($97,000) count it inside their annual caps. PH-95 gives children with disabilities Medicaid regardless of parent income.
Please read this first: program rules, amounts, and waitlists change every year, sometimes mid-year, and no vendor can promise that a program will approve a purchase. Every row below was checked against the linked source on September 21, 2026. Before you spend a dollar, confirm the current rules with the program itself.
Jump to: Pennsylvania facts table · Can this fund a Brainrich gym? · Next steps · FAQ · The full guides · Sources
Pennsylvania funding facts at a glance
Three kinds of public money can reach a family in Pennsylvania: an education account or scholarship, a Medicaid waiver for a child with a developmental disability, and any homeschool-specific tax benefit. Here is what each official source says.
| Question | What the official source says (Pennsylvania) | Source |
|---|---|---|
| ESA or scholarship program | No ESA. The PASS and Lifeline Scholarship proposals were not included in the 2025-26 budget (signed November 12, 2025) or the 2026-27 budget (signed July 12, 2026). Existing programs: the Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) and Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit (OSTC), business-funded tuition scholarships. Pennsylvania is not on the IRS list for the 2027 federal scholarship tax credit. | Governor's office |
| Who runs it | EITC: Department of Community and Economic Development. OSTC: Department of Education. Waivers: Office of Developmental Programs. | PA DCED |
| Amount per student | Not applicable. Pennsylvania has no family-directed education account. | Ask the program |
| Who qualifies | EITC scholarships: household income no greater than $122,322 plus $21,531 per dependent (figure on the DCED page when checked), for students attending a school. Amounts are set by each scholarship organization. | PA DCED |
| Can homeschoolers use it? | No program to use. EITC and OSTC scholarships pay tuition at a school the student attends. No homeschool tax credit or deduction on official sources. | PA DCED |
| Curriculum | Not applicable. Pennsylvania has no family-directed education account. | Ask the program |
| Therapies and therapy equipment | Not applicable. Pennsylvania has no family-directed education account. | Ask the program |
| PE and play equipment | Not applicable. Pennsylvania has no family-directed education account. | Ask the program |
| How purchases work | None. | Ask the program |
| Medicaid waiver for children | ODP Consolidated Waiver (any age with ID or autism; children under 9 with a developmental disability), Person/Family Directed Support (P/FDS) Waiver, and Community Living Waiver, all amended effective January 1, 2026. Register through the county MH/ID office. | PA DHS |
| Equipment category to ask for | "Assistive Technology," "Specialized Supplies," and "Home Accessibility Adaptations." Since January 1, 2026: Consolidated Waiver assistive technology $3,000 per fiscal year (variance possible); P/FDS and Community Living have no separate limit because it counts inside their annual caps ($47,000 and $97,000). | PA Bulletin 25-534 |
| Waiver waitlist | Yes, the PUNS waiting list. Statewide snapshot for ages 21 and over as of February 26, 2026: 3,044 emergency, 978 critical, 3,208 planning (7,230). All-ages total: confirm with the program. | ODP 2025 report |
| Katie Beckett or TEFRA option | Yes, in effect: PH-95 Medical Assistance for children up to 18 with a disability whose parents earn too much for regular Medicaid. Only the child's income is counted. | PA DHS, PH-95 |
| Other homeschool funding | None found on official sources. | Ask the program |
A row that reads "Confirm with the program" means we could not verify that fact on an official source, so we left it open instead of guessing.
Can this fund a Brainrich gym in Pennsylvania?
A Brainrich gym is a steel indoor climbing frame: ladders, monkey bars, rings, a rope, and a swing point, for ages 3 and up with a parent in the same room. Programs do not approve brands. They approve categories, one purchase at a time. Here is how each lane looks today.
No program to use
Pennsylvania education funding
Tax-credit scholarships pay a school's tuition, and no family-directed account exists. Two budget cycles have now passed without PASS or Lifeline.
Case by case
Consolidated, P/FDS, and Community Living Waivers
Ask your Supports Coordinator about "Assistive Technology." On the Consolidated Waiver it is limited to $3,000 per fiscal year since January 1, 2026 (a variance is possible); on P/FDS and Community Living it counts against the annual waiver cap instead. Approval is decided case by case in your child's individual service plan, usually with an OT or PT recommendation attached, and most waivers pay only after regular Medicaid or private insurance has said no. No state approves play equipment automatically. Register with your county MH/ID office early, because the waiting list runs by urgency category.
Needs a Letter of Medical Necessity
HSA and FSA dollars (the same in every state)
HSA and FSA rules are federal, so Pennsylvania families follow the same path as everyone else: with a qualifying diagnosis and a Letter of Medical Necessity, a play gym may be eligible. Your plan administrator makes the final call. Start with is a play gym HSA/FSA eligible? and the Letter of Medical Necessity template.
What Brainrich does, and does not do. We never promise that a program will approve a purchase. That decision belongs to the program. Applications, service plans, and therapist letters are the family's and their professional's work.
The one document we provide is an itemized invoice or quote. Email info@brainrichkids.com with (1) your full name, (2) your address, and (3) the model and color. We send back the invoice with shipping, applicable taxes, and the full total, ready for a case worker or a program portal.
🧩 A budget does not have to cover the whole build
Every Brainrich gym is modular. A Model T3 that fits this year's budget becomes a Spider V3 the day you add the Monkey Bars, and each add-on is its own purchase with its own invoice. Families fund the frame from one budget cycle and the expansion from a later one, out of pocket, or as a gift. That means matching real purchases to real budget cycles. It never means splitting a single purchase to slip under a review threshold, which programs treat as a red flag.
Next steps for Pennsylvania families
1. Register your child with the county MH/ID office to get on the ODP waiting list (PUNS). Ask which urgency category applies.
2. If parent income blocks Medicaid, apply for PH-95 (Medical Assistance for children with special needs), which counts only the child's income.
3. When a case worker, support broker, or program portal asks for pricing, request an itemized invoice from us: email info@brainrichkids.com with your full name, your address, and the model and color. We reply with shipping, applicable taxes, and the full total.
Frequently asked questions: Pennsylvania
Does Pennsylvania have an ESA (education savings account)? No. PASS and Lifeline were not enacted in the 2025-26 or 2026-27 budgets. Pennsylvania's EITC and OSTC programs are business-funded scholarships for tuition at a school, and the state is not on the IRS list for the 2027 federal scholarship tax credit.
What funding can Pennsylvania homeschoolers use? No state education program applies, and there is no homeschool tax credit. Families of children with disabilities can use the ODP waivers and PH-95 Medicaid, plus HSA and FSA dollars with a Letter of Medical Necessity.
Can a Pennsylvania waiver pay for a play gym? Case by case. "Assistive Technology" is limited to $3,000 per fiscal year on the Consolidated Waiver since January 1, 2026, and counts against the $47,000 P/FDS or $97,000 Community Living annual caps. Approval depends on the individual support plan.
Which Pennsylvania Medicaid waiver can fund sensory or adaptive equipment? The ODP Consolidated, Person/Family Directed Support, and Community Living Waivers, which list "Assistive Technology," "Specialized Supplies," and "Home Accessibility Adaptations." As of February 26, 2026, 7,230 adults were on the statewide PUNS waiting list; the all-ages total is not published in the same report.
Does Brainrich work with Pennsylvania funding programs? We provide the itemized invoice or quote that Pennsylvania programs and case workers ask for: email info@brainrichkids.com with your full name, your address, and the model and color, and we send it back with shipping, applicable taxes, and the full total. We do not prepare applications or service plans, and we never promise that a program will approve a purchase. That decision belongs to the program.
📚 The full funding guides
Can You Buy PE and Play Equipment With ESA Funds? · State Disability Waiver Programs: All 50 States · Homeschool Grants and Funding, State by State · Is a Play Gym HSA/FSA Eligible? · Letter of Medical Necessity Template · Financial Assistance: every door in one place · Funding guides for other states
Sources
All sources checked September 21, 2026. Office of the Governor. 2026-27 budget signed. · PA DCED. Educational Improvement Tax Credit. · PA DHS. Consolidated Waiver. · PA DHS. P/FDS Waiver. · Pennsylvania Bulletin 25-534. Assistive technology limit changes. · PA DHS. Community Living Waiver, effective January 1, 2026. · PA ODP. 2025 Multi-Year Program Growth Strategy report (PUNS counts). · PA DHS. Medicaid for Children with Special Needs (PH-95). · IRS. Federal Scholarship Tax Credit participating states.